Orange Ginger Cake

Z turned 13 last week. I can't believe how fast she's growing up. She sometimes seems like such a little girl still (like when she wants to cuddle at bedtime) and at other times she seems so mature. I watched her browsing at Barnes and Noble the other evening, and was struck by how tall and how confident she is.

On Z's request, we had a fantastic birthday party for her at Artists Image Resource, where the girls made images and silkscreened them onto paper, t-shirts, and tote bags. Some of them made some amazing drawings. They were all pretty excited about it and had lots of fun. I heard from one parent that her daughter had worn her t-shirt all weekend. Z is wearing her t-shirt today.

She also requested orange ginger cake with cream cheese frosting. This is what I came up with. I used a recipe for white cake from Beth Johnson. She was in our ward several years ago and made the best tasting decorated cakes I've ever had. I added 2 Tbs. orange zest, 2 Tbs. triple sec (orange liqueur - could use 2 tsp orange extract) and 2 Tbs. chopped crystallized ginger. I was planning to use orange marmalade for the filling, but when I had 6 egg yolks left over from the cake batter, I decided to make some orange curd for the filling. I used a recipe I found online from Emeril Lagasse that called for 6 egg yolks - perfect! Then I added orange zest to the cream cheese frosting and sprinkled crystallized ginger and curls of orange zest on the top to decorate. Z felt there wasn't enough ginger flavor, but most of her friends found it a little frightening as it was, so I think it was fine.

If I were to repeat this, I would skip the cream cheese frosting and use an orange glaze instead - maybe the one from the pan de muertos. The orange curd was maybe the best part, though, so don't skip that. The cream cheese frosting was just a little too overwhelmingly sweet with the rest.

Orange Ginger Cake
(based on Beth Johnson's Sam Houston White Cake)

3/4 cup butter, softenend
2 cups sugar
3 cups flour
1 Tbs. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
6 egg whites, room temperature
1 1/2 tsp pure almond extract
2 Tbs. orange zest (optional)
2 tsp orange extract (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Prepare three 8 or 9 inch pans (grease and flour the bottoms only - use parchment paper if you have it).

Cream butter in an electric mixer. Gradually add sugar, beating until fluffy. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. Combine milk and water. Add flour mixture in fourths to creamed mixture alternately with milk mixture in thirds, mixing after each addition. Stir in almond extract and other flavorings if using.

Beat egg whites with clean beaters in a clean bowl until nearly stiff but not dry peaks. Fold gently into batter. Pour into pans and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Top of cake will be golden brown, inside will be a beautiful white.

She recommends other variations: use mini semi-sweet chocolate chips and no frosting, baked in a sheet pan. Or add the zest of 2 lemons and 2-3 Tbs. poppyseeds, then fill with lemon curd.

Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes, the turn it out and wrap with plastic wrap and put in the freezer. If you're going to leave it in the freezer for more than a day, be sure to double wrap it. By wrapping while it is still warm you prevent moisture from escaping and the cake is not so dry. It's easier to fill and frost the cakes while they are frozen, so based on Beth's advice, I now always bake a cake the day before if I'm going to decorate it.

The filling works best if you pipe a dam of frosting around the edge of each layer before you put in the filling.


Orange Curd

1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice
6 large egg yolks
6 Tbs. sugar
2 tsp. finely grated orange zest
4 Tbs. unsalted butter, cut in pieces

Set a small heatproof liquid measuring cup next to the stove. Reduce the orange juice in a small saucepan set over medium-high heat to 1/2 cup. Use the measuring cup intermittently to check your volume. Set aside to cool slightly.

Fill a small pot one-third of the way with water and bring to a boil.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the yolks, sugar and orange zest. Slowly add the reduced orange juice while whisking continuously until completely incorporated. Set the bowl over the pot of simmering water. Reduce the heat to medium low. Whisk constantly for 6 to 7 minutes, or until curd thickens and holds its shape when stirred. Remove the curd from the heat and stir in the butter.

Strain the curd through a fine mesh sieve into a metal bowl set over a bowl of ice water. Stir the curd occasionally until cool, about five minutes. Transfer the curd to a small container, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until well chilled. Use within one week.